2 out of 5

I really have no idea what Marvel was going for here, except maybe ‘take the money and run.’  Which is not meant to be a sleight on Al Ewing, or Lee Garbett, or Jorge Coelho, or Lee Loughridge, or Clayton Cowles… just on the questionable editorial decisions that led to such a pause after the first, super-fun arc of Loki and the following issues, which were horribly mired in crossover nonsense.  Now, to some extent, Ewing could be blamed, because he was working on some of that crossover nonsense, and so perhaps it was his call to so heavily intertwine this book with others, but I generally feel like the higher-ups are accountable at the Big Two.

I mean, fair enough, Loki issues #1 – 5 were a marketing thing as well, retooling the trickster into a handsome rogue to capitalize on the sudden stardom of Cinematic U Loki.  This worked; the book was popular.  But what gave it an extra kick is that Ewing actually turned in something witty and interesting, Loki struggling with his nature while trying to come out on top as an overall good guy by being a ‘secret agent’ for the gods… which gave the series a fun spy twist.  Yes, the first arc ended on a questionable note as to how that fun twist would continue.

And then we waited.

And the book that reemerged is nothing like what came before it, bereft of most charm and replaced with endless asterisks referencing other issues.  Scenes will end mid-book with a panel saying “to see what happens next, check out this other series woop woop!”  You have to put up with this with ongoings in Marvel and DC, and stick it out for a few issues, but the AXIS nonsense carried on for too long, and it was not wise to affect the book as such after putting it on hold while Loki bopped around in a Thor event.  So: these are not absolute tripe or anything.  They just read like completely standard Marvel books now, and I’m tired of waiting to see if things will get back to what they were.